Hey /mu/, so I'm a long time guitarist and bassist and I decided to expand my horizons and pick up drums. I've been playing for a little while, and I know practice makes perfect, but I'm wondering if any of you have any exercises or routines I can practice to help develop hi hat foot independence. I've been analyzing a lot of Danny Carey's work from Tool (pic related), since many of his pieces include a lot of hi hat manipulation. What do you guys like to do to train your left foot?
>>61387320
do unexpected shit with it repeatedly
>>61387320
Practice
Commitment to practice
not this
one good thing to do is to just play quarter notes on your hit-hat along with whatever you are playing with. At least that a good start. Then play eights with it. Then move them around to different spots in the beat. just try to keep it constant while you are doing everything else
>>61387385
but practice doing unexpected shit
repeatedly
might be worth looking at some of the basic books out there that foster hand independence and transpose hand exercises into LR foot combos
>>61387393
I have been doing this mildly, I'll just be practicing a song and I'll get enveloped in it. So I typically forget to do anything with my clutch foot.
>>61387406
I have thought about setting time apart to practice snare fills with a double kick pedal, just to build foot strength in general.
>>61387441
doesnt have to be double bass
use stone's stick control sticking patterns for feet, bass and hihat
just suggesting this because i dont know any established answers for you. but every answer will inevitably be some form of rudiment+time+effort
>>61387320
Pick a groove, play it with 3 limbs, use the remaining limb to play the rhythm alphabet on top. Look up Benny Greb if you don't know what I'm talking about.
Jojo also has a DVD out on foot technique and it includes exercises on coordination and balance that treat feet like they're feet and not just an extra set of hands (i.e. they're not just paradiddles and flams with feet). Word of warning, they get very hard very fast.
>>61387320
Gary Chester- New Breed
>>61388471
can't recommend this enough
>>61388983
Seconded.
>>61387320
I had some excercises about this which were from a book by either Danny Carey or Neil Peart (can't remember).
The basic premise was to practice an ostinato just with both feet. Once you got that automated, practice another ostinato just with both hands (while still playing the original ostinato on your feet). Once you achieve that, try switching the the feet ostinato with the hand ostinato without dropping the beat.
I hated that shit as a kid.
>>61388471
Shit that book was so hard for me. Definitely recommend it, I need to pick it up again myself
OP here, thanks for the replies guys! I'll look into some of these books you guys are talking about. I have been playing long enough to realize that it's all about practicing, and practicing and practicing. But I always like hearing other musicians strategies and methods to approaching things like this. My philosophy with music is that in the end, there is never a "right" way to do something. Just different methods.
>>61390383
>>61388983
I practiced it for 2 years now. You should definately start slow, add one limb at a time. Use a click. And read the first few pages, where the author gives advice. Also sing the part of each limb along. The last part really is a huge help in aquiring independence.
Dont give up, it will feel amazing, once you make progress and are able to play that shit.
David garibaldi's book has lots of good exercises on 4-way independence. They're also funky and syncopated, I use a few patterns as fills sometimes.
>>61387320
try the intro to Led Zeppelins "When The Levee Breaks" the hihat is simple enough. tss tss tss tss. i can do the bass/snare part just fine. bam slap bam bambam slap. but i simply cannot put the bass/snare hihat together. i swear to christ you have to have 2 brains to play drums. sorry, no help. good luck.
